Devlog #4 Leaderboards, Bug Fixes & Polish

A lot has happened since the last update, mostly under the hood improvements and fixes based on tester feedback. Google Play Games Leaderboard The biggest addition this update is Google Play Games integration. Players can now compete on a global leaderboard, your best score gets submitted automatically after every run. It took a surprising amount of setup work involving OAuth credentials, SHA-1 fingerprints and Play Console configuration, but it's working now. If you cancel the Play Games sign-in popup, the app now remembers that and won't bother you again. You can always reconnect later via the Settings menu. Tester Feedback Having real testers through closed testing has been invaluable. A few things that came out of it:

The rope connecting the boat to a buoy now comes from the correct side of the boat instead of always snapping to the front or back Occasional wrong swing direction has been fixed The game no longer asks to connect to Play Games every single launch after cancelling

Tutorial improvements Added a TAP & HOLD hint that appears when the first buoy gets close to the boat, so new players get a nudge at exactly the right moment instead of reading a wall of text upfront. Honestly, it surprised me how many testers struggled with the core mechanic at first. It feels intuitive to me after building it for months, but for someone picking it up fresh it's a completely new concept. A small in-game hint at the right moment makes a big difference.

What's next The closed testing period is almost complete, getting close to the production release! After launch I'm planning to add unlockable boats, seasonal themes and achievements.

Stay tuned!